Marquis Kidd – Solid bat out of the Intercounty Baseball League and experienced youth coach

Marquis Kidd played under Tony Gwynn at San Diego State and has carried that knowledge forward throughout his playing career and coaching career. Marquis first stint in professional baseball came with the Sullivan Explorers in the upstart Empire League in 2016 and most recently with the Guelph Royals and Burlington Herd of the Intercounty Baseball League in Canada where he hit .344 over the span of 22 games.

The outfielder by trade has spent the past five years coaching youth baseball in California ranging from 10 to 18 years olds and since 2014 is one of the lead instructors at the 108 Performance Academy. Meanwhile he has continued to develop his own skills at La Sierra University (NAIA), Whittier College (NCAA III) and a number of summer baseball programs.

Marquis is looking to continue his career overseas. Any club interested in a motivated youth coach who can contribute with a big bat should reach out to Marquis with any questions or expressions of interest.

Marquis on playing overseas:

“Ilove the idea of being able to travel while playing and coaching the game I love. I also feel that being able to explore a different side of the world is a once in a lifetime opportunity that I wouldn’t want to pass up.”

REFERENCES

“Marquis was a great kid who landed at Whittier at a time when our outfield was loaded so he didn’t get a ton of opportunities in the field. Offensively, he has an outstanding eye at the plate, drawing 10 walks in limited time. He has the ability to drive the ball into the gaps – more of a doubles guy than home run guy. He was an absolute joy to coach, as I could rely on him to work his tail off every day at practice – which is extremely difficult to do when you know that you’re probably not going to be ion the starting lineup come game day. He is very much a yes sir-no sir type of kid who will do whatever it takes to help the team be successful. Marquis was a stellar student in the classroom and a very good leader on the field. I wish I had him for all four years!

Please do not hesitate to contact me should you require additional information. Marquis is an outstanding young man who would be a tremendous asset to any program lucky enough to garner his services.”

“I am writing this letter on behalf of Marquis Kidd in reference to his abilities as a coach. During his college years, Marquis came to me for hitting instruction back in 2013. After taking him on as a student, I quickly recognized his hunger for advanced knowledge and real information. As a Kinesiology student, many of the things Marquis had been told about hitting didn’t make sense to him. He connected with our scientific approach to understanding metrics and capturing data in the swing. He took hold of the information and really ran with it and has continuously studied hitting ever since.

I opened up 108 Performance in 2014 and I immediately hired Marquis to assist me with the hitting operations. His understanding of what high level swing patterns look like is second to none and over the last year specifically, I have seen tremendous growth in his ability to not only diagnose the issues, but connect with the players on how to fix them. The most important part of great coaching is being able to communicate the information and have the players understand it. Marquis takes complex things and breaks them down in a way that guys can understand.

Most importantly, Marquis cares about his players and they know it. His relationship with them and their belief in him, comes from his extremely high care level for everyone around him. Marquis has passion, knowledge and love for teaching the game of baseball. He is quiet, but when he speaks his players know its time to listen.

Marquis has been side by side with me working with MLB, MiLB, Collegiate, HS and youth athletes. I am sure he will be a tremendous asset to any program.”

SIGNING PREFERENCES

Marquis is willing to pay half the cost of his round trip flight if a club can provide accommodations, and either a cost of living salary or a job. Marquis is looking to play overseas for the 2018 season.